CLINIC Files Amicus Brief on BIA Appeal for Transgender Honduran

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The Mercer Law School Immigration Appeals Clinic filed an amicus brief on CLINIC’s behalf on March 11, 2020. The amicus brief lays out how the particular social group of “Honduran transgender women” meets the three-prong test laid out in Matter of M-E-V-G-.

Update: After submission of this, and other amicus briefs, the Department of Homeland Security stipulated to remand the case to the immigration judge.

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CLINIC, and nine other non-profit partners, filed an amicus brief in Benitez v. Barr, a case in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals challenging the attorney general’s decision in Matter of Castro-Tum 27 I&N Dec. 271 (A.G. 2018) that stripped immigration court judges of their authority to administratively close cases.

CLINIC filed an amicus brief in the De Pena-Paniagua v. Barr case in the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit arguing that restrictions on asylum for victims of private actor harm could harm those seeking asylum on religious grounds. In a decision critical of Matter of A-B-, the First Circuit granted the petition for review, allowing Ms. De Pena to pursue her domestic violence-based asylum claim.

CLINIC submitted comments on April 23, 2020, opposing the Department of Health and Human Services' Interim Final Rule, or IFR, outlining the procedure by which the Centers of Disease Control, or CDC, may "suspend the introduction of persons from designated countries or places, if required, in the interest of public health." CLINIC's comment calls upon the U.S. government to rescind this IFR and proclamation and end this unprecedented restriction on seeking asylum at the border.

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As it has for more than 30 years, CLINIC will fight for the rights of immigrants. CLINIC trains legal representatives who provide high-quality and affordable immigration legal services. We develop and sustain a network of nonprofit programs that serve close to 500,000 immigrants every year. We cultivate projects that support and defend vulnerable immigrant populations by:

providing direct representation for asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border and educating them about their rights;

reuniting formerly separated families;

increasing legal representation for those in removal proceedings and in detention;

providing public education on immigration law and policies; and

advocating for fair and just immigration policies that acknowledge the inherent dignity and value of all people.

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About the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.

Embracing the Gospel value of welcoming the stranger, CLINIC promotes the dignity and protects the rights of immigrants in partnership with a dedicated network of Catholic and community legal immigration programs. We are based out of Silver Spring, Maryland (Washington, D.C. metropolitan area), with an office in Oakland, California, and additional staff working from locations throughout the country. Questions and inquiries can be sent to national@cliniclegal.org.

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